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A new colorful Bust Half - a story of opportunity

pursuitoflibertypursuitofliberty Posts: 7,109 ✭✭✭✭✭
edited March 28, 2022 7:35PM in U.S. Coin Forum

Sometimes even a blind squirrel finds a nut

It pays to be in the right place in the right time, and have a little powder left in the keg … otherwise … they slip away. I have been fortunate of late, as a few wonderful opportunities have come along, and the powder has been plentiful. I’m not sure which part is harder. Certainly I know both are necessary.

Anyway, as hobbyists we make friends, friendly associates, people we know, and those that hopefully know what we like … what it is we really pursue. And sometimes, that last little bit of information can make all the difference.

Twice this happened, all around the course of the same sale.

I was able to secure one Bust Half from Sheridan Downey’s recent Beaver Falls sale (the wonderful 1820 O-108 in P58 with amazing semi-PL surfaces), and am absolutely thrilled to have her. This was partially made possible due to a discussion about how badly I wanted a 20-108. This is the only Double Die for the series (Reverse Die), and I really covet the 1820 date in general.

I missed on others in the sale, and so it goes.

Yet, as I was discussing who won what with some friends, I was half offered a coin that was soon to be a second for someone. The email went something like, “You might like my colorful, soon-to-be duplicate 1813 O-101a. An old obverse image is attached.”

Hmmmmm. Well, I already have a 50c/UNI, the Die Marriage that is the 13-101, but mine is a VLDS, with horrendous (wonderful!) clashes and the last known crack. In fact, the 101.3 designation came about due to some back and forth I had with a few senior members when I first officially became a part of the BHNC. Mine is the discovery coin, as it were.

But the picture attached to that email was enchanting. Wow, that could really be something I might like.

I asked for more images, explained I already had that DM but was still interested, and we agreed that he wanted to make sure he was happy with his NEWP prior to “officially” offering it to me. And so, I put it on the back burner.

A week went by, and I got an email Saturday morning. With more pictures. And a history. The coin was purchased raw in 1999 at a show in Portland and had been in his collection ever since. He finally had it graded in 2018.

And he included his happy explanation that he LOVED his new piece, and was I still interested in this one.

Absolutely, I thought, because I really love what I’m looking at.

We agreed on a price and I responded with a “Yes please!”. He laughed and said the already had it packaged up for me and was heading to the post office in 10 minutes. I also made a trip to the post office and dropped a check in the mail.

And so, just like that, I have a beautiful colorful girl to add to the collection which arrived today, much to my surprise when I got home from work today.

Any comments you want to offer, including your guess of the grade, please do. And thanks for letting me share my little treasures. My pictures

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“We are only their care-takers,” he posed, “if we take good care of them, then centuries from now they may still be here … ”

Todd - BHNC #242

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